Submarine boat.



H. S. EPES.

SUBMARINE BOAT.

APPLICATION FILED APR.24,1909.

INVENTOR ,a w BY 1 ATTORNEYS Patented Jan. 26, 1915,

e SHEETS-SfiEET 1.

WITNESSES: yC/ fi a E. 4

4 H. S. EPES.

SUBMARINE BOAT. APPLICATION FILED APR. 2 1909.

1, 126,624. Patented Jan. 26, 1915.

6 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

j INVENTOR ATTORNEYS H. s. EPES. SUBMARINB BOAT.

APPLICATION FILED APR.24,1909.

1',126,6 24. I Patented Jan. 26, 1915. a SHEETS-SHEET s.

W l a! WITNESSES: lNVENTOR w M I K4 3 flyww ATTORNEYS H. S. EPES.

SUBMARINE BOAT.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 24,1s09.

1,126,624. v Patented Jan. 26, 1915.

6 SHBETS-SHEET 4.

WITNE SE INVENTOR ATTORNEYS H. S. EPES.

v SUBMARINE BOAT. APPLICATION FILED APR.24.1909.

Patented Jan. 26, 1915.

6 SHEETS-SHE 5.

WITNESSES /%M INVENTOR A bfiNEY- l H. s. BPEs. SUBMARINE BOAT.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 24, 1909.

1,126,624. Patented Jan.26,1915.

6 SHEETSSHEET 6.

NVENTOR gg f I w /W M LXM ATTORNEYS exertion.

or minor, mssaon'osnrrs, assieivon so ELECTRIC soar coatsnstr,

OF 550333, N. Y., is CORPGEVATION F NEW JEFRBEEY.

SUBMAEINE BOAT.

ing to be a full, clear, .and exact description of the. invention, such as will enable F others skilled in the art to which it annex "rains to make and use the same.

The invention relates particularly to the hull construction, and arrangement of ballast-tanks, in submarineboats, whereby the ballast-tank flooding, and discharging valves may be grouped together preferably beneath the (forming-tower, and under the eye of the commanding officer; and whereby the water may be completely discharged from so the ballast-tanksthrough outlets at the extreme bottom thereofi. without the use of s outs, thereby making easy a complete draining of the tanks, and at the same time giving to the outtlowing water the full effeet, in acting downwardly against the water of submergence, to force the vessel to-the surface.

in the drawing" i have illustrated in some detail the construction and arrangement of parts in a submarine boat built in accordance with my invention, in order that the nature and objects oi? the invention may, from a studv of this specific embodiment.v be oomph underswod. I

in the canines. Figure l. is a central vertical section of a portion of the torpedo boat amidships showing; the control. station, the forward iii Ml aft storage battery ranks separated by the midship-well, and ac beneath these the ballast-tanks in cross section. Fig. is a transverse section on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1 looking in the direction of the arrows. Fig. 3 is a transverse section on a larger scale taken on the line ':-,--2-. o1 -'l and looking in the direction of the arrows, the section illustrating particu only the arriingement of flooding and marge valves and their onerating levers. is a plan taken on the line {E of Fig. 3, showing the arrangement of parts in the ihi lship-well. Fig. 5 a similar plan on the ine 55 of Fig. 3,.showihi; the adjusting g'ta ihin cross sectionsnd the relative arrangement .of. the varioils tank iioodin and. discharge valves.

Specification of'Letters Patent.

?atented Jan. 28. 31915..

Application fllefi. Agni! 24, 1909. Serial No. 4%,915.

is a similar plan on line 6-6 of Fig. 3, andshowing the relative arrangement of the main forward and aft ballast-tanks and the auxiliary ballast-tank with their flooding and discharge valves. F ig. 7 is a transverse section of the control station and midshipwell on the. line 77 of Fig. 4L- and looking in the direction of the arrows. Fig. 8 is a plan view partly in section showing" the bottom of the V6SSQlM1'IldShlDS and illustrating the arrangement of the duct keel and valve-protecting flanges as well as the relative arrangement of the ballast tank flooding and discharge valves, and Fig. 9 is a sectional plan similar to Fig. 6, but illustrating a modified arrangement of ballRSC i/RRlCS by which the forward and after main ballast-tanks are subdivided and the flooding and discharge valves are still grouped beneath the control-station.

In the construction illustrated'in Figs. 1-8 inclusive the vessel has (see Fig. 6) a forward main ballast-tank A provided'with two flooding and discharge valves 0;, and the smaller drainage valve d communicating with the duct keel and the purfip of the vessel. in a manner which will be further described; an after main ballast-tank B having two flooding and discharge valves 1) and drainage valve 71; and the auxiliary ballast-tank C ha ving the flooding and discharge valve (1 and the drainage valve 0, and through which passes the stem of adjusting-tank flooding and dischar je valve f and its casing f, the arrangement of "the bulkheads, a" and t" defining the forward and after main ballast-tanks and auxiliary tank being" such that the after main ballasttank is separated from. the forward main ballast-tank by a single frame space ,at the center of the vessel, as shown, and in this frame space the Iii-shaped auxiliary tank eX- tonds from one side of the vessel to theother.

it is possible by such a constructionto place the flooding, discharge and drainage valves for these several tanks close together so that they .roay be directiy controlled by levers in the control station above. Inaddition to these main and auxiliary ballast tanks there is provided theadplstmg tank I) which is. now commonly employed in submarine vesselsof the United States Navyv and the function of which fnll set forth in patent tolliawrence Y..,S'pear o. 80 5.,49 6,' granted November 28, 1905. it is only neeessary here to point out that this tank D is in communication with the auxiliary ballasttank through the pipe connections d controlled by valve d, and is in communion tion with the external water through the pipe connections controlled by valve 6', and leading to casing ff within the auxiliary ballast-tank and the outlet fromwhich is controlled by the adjusting-tank flooding and discharge valve f. For the purpose of forming a suitable support for the various valve seats which open outwardly through the bottom of the hull, the bottom of the hull casing or shell amidships is formed of a heavy plate, or a casting E, the shape and relative position of which can best be under-- stood from an inspection of Figs. 1, 3 and 6. Extending lengthwiseof the vessel and across the bottom face of plate E is a duct keel F which is closed against entry of the surrounding water and is incommunication with the vessel's pumps (not shown) through the opening 5/ (see Fig. 1) and it is into this duct keel that the drainage valves (1,, b and 0' open. Upon either side of the duct keel, and protecting the several flooding and discharge valves 0, b, c and f, are the bulged guarding structures G and H, each comprising a depending angle iron houtside of the flooding and discharge valves, and a perforated protecting plate h supported by the depending pieces h and the parts of the duct keel, all as clearly illustrated in Figs.

. titions w; which partitions also serve to deline the midship-well beneath the control station and containing the adjusting-tank D. Beneath the battery compartments and extending up at the sides thereof, as shown in Fig. 2, are the forward andafter main,

ballast-tanks and the auxiliary ballast. tank defined in part by the inner plating of the hull and partly by the cross partitions, which where they cross the valve plate E, act as plate girders to stiffen that plate, which is further stiffened by the duct keel I and members it of the valve guards. It will From the foregoing it will be" understood op be noted that the valve plate E is fiat, and not bulged to conform to the contour of the hull, and that the bottom cement line :0 1s

fiush'with the uppersur face of the fiat plate so that the formation'of pockets n the bottoms of the'main ballast-tanks is avoided and those tanks becompletely-dra'med.

.that the forward main ballast-tank has two flooding and discharge valves a which com-- municate with the spaces defined bythe guarding structures G and H; the after main ballast-tank has two flooding and discharge valves 6 which likewise communicate with the spaces defined by the guarding structures G and H; the auxiliary tank has a flooding and discharge valve 0 communicating with the space defined by the struc ture G; and the adjusting tank D hasa flooding and discharge valve f communicating with the space defined by the structure H and open to the water. The several tanks may thus be flooded or emptied by the operation of their valves and of appropriate mechanism for increasing the pressure within the tanks when it is desired to discharge their contents. Such mechanism is typified in' Figs. 1, 2 and 3 of the drawings by a diagrammatic showing of a compressed. air supply system. It will be further understood that the forward main ballast-tank has a drainage valve a, the after inain-ballast-tank a drainage valve I), and the auxiliary ballast-tank a drainage valve 0, all -of these drainage valves opening into the duct keel and serving to completely drain the tanks; and that the stems of all of these valves extend up through the midship-well in position to be controlled vbyappropriate hand-levers or wheels in the control station.

The construction and arrangement of the of the conning-tower station and operating in a well-known manner, which will be understood by reference to Fig. :2 of the drawings without further description. The drainage valves a and 1) are likewise operated byhand-wheels m and n respectively,

shown in Fig. 4. It will be observed that the valves 0 and f, communicating directly with the water, are in fact respectively supplementary to the valve 0, which is the ef- 't'e'ctivc auxiliary tank flooding and dis-.1 charge valve, and to the valve 6', which is the effective adjusting tank flooding and discharge valve. Therefore, the valves which are operated by hand wheels are the three drainage valves and the supplementary valves 0 and 7, whereas all the valves which must be operated in an emergency, namely the forward and aft main ballast-tank flood; ing and-discharge valves, theauxiliarybal last-tank flooding" and discharge 'va'lvea'nd" the adjusting-tank flooding and discharge valve, are controlled by the The modeof at, 'b", c ands" respectively.

:and 7. Each hand lever is connected to a shaft (either directly or by suitable connectingrodsy-or gears) which shaft carries a crank as indicated for example at p, the crank engaging a horizontal slot 79 in a head on the upper end of the particular valve stem. My this construction when the hand lever is turned it turns the shaft and crank and raises or lowers the valve stem and valve. Each hand lever carries a lockihgdog r engaging a rack r in the well- .known manner to hold the lever in set posi- ,tion. By this arrangement all of the control valves of the ballast-tanks and the adpasting-tank are under the immediate con- 7 'trol of a person in the control station, and

all of those valveswhich it is necessary to actuate quickly 111 an emergency are provided with hand levers which extend up conveniently "within reach.

. There is indicated in Fig. 9 an arrangement in which the main ballast tanks are sub-divided, and in this case those divisions the tanks which ,are farthest removed [from the center of the vessel have portions projecting toward the center and containing theflooding valves 8, s, t, t and the discharge valves 8', t, so that in this case also the flooding and discharge valves 0f all the tanks are grouped beneath the control station:

What I claim is 1 1. A submarine boat having forward and after main ballast tanks, an auxiliary ballast tankyand an adjusting ballast tank, flooding and discharging valves for said tanks grouped together in the bottom of the boat, a control station, and valve operating mechanism extending up within the boat into thecontrol station.

2. In submarine boats, ballast-tanks having flooding and discharge and drainage outlets opening from the bottom of the .tanks downwardly to the water of submergencebeneath the hull of the boat, and a duct keel, the drainage outlets opening into the duct keel and the flooding and discharge outlets opening in proximity to but outside of, the duct keel, valves controlling said outlets, and a guard structure secured to the bottom of the boat outside of the flooding I and discharge valves.

hull a main deck, beneath that forward and 3. A submarine boat having within its after storage battery compartments sepatery compartments and the midship-well, a

valve controlled conduit between the auxiliary ballasttank and the adjusting ballast tank, and aconduit leading from the adjusting ballast tank to the external water, substantially as described.

4. A submarine boat having within its hull a main deck, and beneath that forward and after storage battery compartments separated amidships by a midship-well, an adjusting ballast-tank within the midshipwell, and bulkheads beneath the battery compartments and the midship-well defining, with the hull of the vessel, forward and after main ballast-tanks and an auxiliary ballast-tank, flooding and discharge valves for said ballast-tanks grouped beneath the midship-well, a control station, and valveoperating mechanism extending up through the midship-well within'rea'ch of a person in the control-station.

5. A submarine boat having within its hull a main deck and beneath that forward and after storage battery compartments separated amidships by a midship-well, a regulating ballast-tank within the midshtpwell, a heavy valve plate in the bottom of the hull below the midship-well, and bulkheads extending across said plate and defining, with the hull of the vessel, 0Ile O1 discharge valves for said ballast tanks seated in said valve plate, a control plate, and valve operating mechanism extending up through the midship well within reach of a person in the control station.

6. In a submariiie boat, forward and after main ballast-tanks having portions thereof projected into close proximity amidships, a

substantially I-shaped auxiliary ballast-i tank having its stem lying between the main ballast-tanks, and valves for said tanks grouped amidships in the projected portions of the main ballast-tanks and the stem por tion of the auxiliary ballast-tank.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature, in presence of two witnesses.

HENRY s. irrns.

Witnesses THEODORUS S. BAILEY, WILLIAM R. Sarvns.

1915, upon the application of Henry S. Epes, of.Quincy, Massachusetts, for an improvement in Submarine Boats, an error appears in the printed specification requiring oorrection as follows: Page 3, line 9, f0r the Word My read B and that the said Letters Patent should be read with this correction therein that the same may conform to the record of the case in the Patent Ofiice. V

Signed and sealed this 23rd day of February, A. D., 1915.

- [SEAL] I J. T. NEWTON;

Acting Commissioner of Patents.

7 It is hereby certified that in Letters Patent No. 1,126,624, granted January 26; 

